Congresswoman Matsui Honors Local Business Owners During Small Business Week

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, May 24, 2010

CONTACT: MARA LEE
(202) 225-7163

As part of National Small Business Week, today Congresswoman Doris O. Matsui (D Sacramento) recognized the contributions Sacramento's small businesses have made to the local community as the engine and backbone of our economy. Small Business Week is being celebrated nationally from May 23rd through May 29th, 2010, and has been marked by Presidential Proclamation every year since 1963.

The American dream is deeply rooted in the spirit of our nation's small businessmen and women, said Congresswoman Matsui. In the coming weeks, I look forward to working with my colleagues on finalizing the Wall Street Reform Act and considering The American Jobs, Closing Tax Loopholes and Preventing Outsourcing Act that will restore credit to small businesses and provide additional tax relief for small businesses and families.

These pieces of legislation are continuing the work Rep. Matsui and her colleagues in the House have done to help bring the American economy back from the brink of disaster. The American Jobs, Closing Tax Loopholes and Preventing Outsourcing Act, H.R. 4213, will extend the Randamp;D tax credit for American businesses, invest in our infrastructure, expand summer jobs for young people, and provide tax relief for middle class American families.

It is imperative that our nation's laws be fair to businesses of all sizes whether they are young men and women just opening the doors of a start-up or established businesses trying to thrive, added Rep. Matsui. And we have to get credit flowing again for our small businesses, in addition to passing the jobs package before the House that will support Sacramento's small businesses.

Over the 15 months, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has supported billions of dollars in loans and Federal contracts for small businesses across the country, including in Sacramento. Moreover, the comprehensive health insurance reform legislation signed-into law earlier this year makes it easier for small business owners to provide health insurance to their employees, and gives entrepreneurs the security they need to innovate and take risks.

In order to assist local small businesses in tough economic times, Congresswoman Matsui has also hosted a series of Small Business Opportunities Workshops and roundtable discussions where current and prospective business owners were able to learn about the federal resources available to them, and to help small business understand how to contract with the federal government.

I am proud to call Sacramento the Headquarters of All Business Machines, Inc., said Jim Pagluica, Vice President of All Business Machines. We enjoy the benefit of a strong foundation based on support from our Congresswoman, the Sacramento District SBA and The Federal Technology Center. All Business Machines is benefiting from the Small Business Administration's HUBZone Program. The mission is to promote job growth, capital investment, and economic development to historically underutilized business zones, by providing contracting assistance to small businesses located in these economically distressed communities.

As a small business owner, I have a responsibility not only to my customers and employees, but the community as a whole. As many small businesses face challenges such as limited access to credit and rising healthcare costs, Congresswoman Matsui has stood up for our needs. I am very appreciative of her diligent leadership because small businesses will prosper and that means entire communities will too, said Gordon Fowler, President of 3fold Communications, a full service marketing agency in Sacramento.

For more information about how Rep. Matsui is helping to support Sacramento's small businesses and to download informational packets distributed at Congresswoman Matsui's Small Business Workshops, please click here.